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Summary:
Piper Reed is a typical military brat. She moves from place to place every few years, and each time she just knows she will hate the new place she is moving (or PCSing to be specific). This time, she and her family are on the road to Pensacola, Florida where her Dad, who she call Chief, has been assigned. The family has only two weeks to say goodbye before they pack up the care and leave San Diego. Piper is dreading saying goodbye to her friends, her Gypsy Club, the dog next door, and even her tree house. She just knows that Pensacola will not be as fun. Her older sister, Tori, feels the same, but her younger sister, Sam the genius, is on board. The drive itself took days, with the only thing to look forward to being her turn in the back seat, Piper would have it all to herself. After the drive and a stop to visit family, the Reeds finally arrive in Florida. Piper is sad to discover their new house is much smaller, and she will be sharing a room. Yet another reason to hate Pensacola. Things start looking up when the family decides to get a dog. While it's not a German Shepherd as Piper had hoped, picking the name of the new poodle makes her feel a bit better. The dog is just the start, however. Soon, Piper finds new friends to invite to her Pensacola Gypsy Club, and even manages to convince them to come over for fortune telling. With a little help from her sisters, Piper pulls it off. Her new friends are impressed! When Piper hears news of Chief having to leave, she knows her new friends will understand and help her through.
My Thoughts:
I thought this book was great! Of course, I may be a little bias as a military dependent teaching military brats, but nevertheless. Piper's adventurous spirit is contagious. This fast read shows the reader, particularly the military brat reader, that while we all have the same fears about new things, in the end- it usually works out. I know the students I serve will also enjoy that Piper speaks their language. She doesn't go to a grocery store, she goes to a commissary- just like them! While this is an especially realistic example of fiction for the military child, I think it could also be realistic for anyone who has been the new kid in school. Most people can relate to Piper's struggles to figure it all out.
Their Thoughts:
Excerpt from Marsha Broadway's review in Childrens Book and Play Review (Jan./Feb. 2008)-
"Spunky nine-year-old Piper is the adventurous middle sister in the Reed family that is transferred from California to Pensacola, Florida. The storyline focuses on the move, a visit with extended family along the way, and adjusting to a new school, and is sprinkled with sibling rivalry and affection. Tori, a budding teenager, is by turns annoyed at and protective of her sisters. Five-year old Sam reads Laura Ingalls Wilder books at the breakfast table and poses as a fortune teller to help Piper form a new social club. Piper copes with dyslexia and the fear of reading aloud in class as she finds new friends and delights in watching the Blue Angles and dreaming about becoming a Blue Angel herself. Both mom and dad are involved and loving parents who help their children cope with the changes that the transfer brings. This easy chapter book no doubt draws on Holt's own experience as a child in a Navy family and appears to be the first in a series of Piper adventures."
Society of School Librarians International Honor Book, 2007
Texas Bluebonnet Award 2009-2010
My Ideas:
As April is designated as the Month of the Military Child, I would use Piper Reed (3 books in the series) as part of a display promoting literature relevant to the military child. Other books might include: Night Catch, Mommy You're My Hero, My Air Force Mom, Alpha Bravo Charlie, H is for Honor, Love Lizzie, Operation Yes, and Soldier Mom.
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